Comcast Advertising unveils new tech to boost TV ad measurement accuracy

Comcast Advertising, the advertising arm of Comcast Cable, has introduced Signal Authentication Service, a new technology designed to enhance the precision of cross-screen measurement and attribution for television advertising.

This service aims to provide measurement companies and platforms with a reliable identity signal for various privacy-centric applications, including impression householding, cross-device frequency optimization, and attribution measurement.

The service employs Blockgraph technology, allowing partners to submit ad logs, web analytics, or attribution data and receive verification that the ad exposures or events were delivered to an authenticated residential household. This process is intended to ensure accurate measurement of advertising reach and effectiveness.

The introduction of Comcast Advertising’s Signal Authentication Service is a response to the challenges faced by advertisers in accurately measuring campaign performance across linear and streaming TV platforms. Traditional methods, which often rely on IP addresses and probabilistic device graphs, are prone to inaccuracies due to the regular rotation of IP addresses. These inaccuracies can significantly impact the reliability of reach and frequency reporting and the attribution of ad exposures to specific households.

“The inaccuracy of today’s media reporting is greatly impacting advertisers’ ability to truly understand which parts of their media is actually providing value and the increasing amount of signal loss is further exacerbating this,” said Larry Allen, VP & GM, data & addressable enablement, Comcast Advertising. “This new service will greatly improve the ability for our advertiser clients to confidently target and reach their audiences, and be able to measure campaign performance across linear and streaming.”

The unreliability of current impression counting and reach reporting methods in programmatic advertising has made it difficult for advertisers to accurately assess the effectiveness and value of their media investments. By providing a more accurate method for evaluating on-target reach and frequency, Comcast Advertising’s service aims to enable advertisers to make more informed decisions about budget allocation and audience targeting, ultimately driving better business results.